Supply chain problems have caused Apple to fall short of Wall Street’s expectations, and the company’s chief executive, Tim Cook, said the impact will be even worse during holiday sales this quarter.
Cook told Reuters on Thursday that the third quarter had “greater than expected supply constraints” as well as disruptions linked to the pandemic in Southeast Asia. While Apple saw “significant improvements” in late October, the chip shortage persisted and is now affecting “most of our products,” Cook said.
“We are doing everything we can to get more [chips] and also everything we can do operationally to ensure we are moving forward as quickly as possible,” said Cook.
He said the company expects year-over-year growth for the quarter ending in December. Analysts expect growth of 7.4%, to US$ 119.7 billion (R$ 671.7 billion. at the current price).
“We are projecting very solid year-over-year demand growth. But we also anticipate that we will have demand of less than $6bn (R$33.7bn),” Cook said.
Apple’s results showed mixed performance.
Revenue and earnings for the quarter were $83.4 billion (R$468 billion) and $1.24 per share, respectively, compared to analyst estimates of $84.8 billion (R$473 .6 billion) and US$ 1.24, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Apple dashed expectations in two main categories. Fourth-quarter iPhone sales totaled $38.9 billion (R$218.3 billion), down from estimates of $41.5 billion (R$232.9 billion), according to data from Refinitiv.
Cook said chips made with older technology remain the main supply constraint. He said Apple isn’t sure whether the shortage will ease after the holiday shopping season.
The accessories segment, which contains fast-growing categories like AirPods wireless headphones, earned $8.8 billion (R$49.4 billion), against analyst expectations of $9.3 billion (R$ 52.2 billion), according to data from Refinitiv.
Other segments fared better. Sales of iPads and Macs totaled $8.3 billion ($46.6 billion) and $9.2 billion ($51.6 billion), respectively, compared to analyst estimates of $7. 2 billion (R$40.4 billion) and US$9.2 billion, according to data from Refinitiv.
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